Class Notes

Don Campbell BS ’81 on Mt. Whitney peak July 10, 2025

Name: Donald Campbell

Class Year(s): 1981

Note: Don Campbell BS ’81 (cross country and track and field), hiked up and down Mt. Whitney (California), at 14,505 feet, the highest peak in the continental 48 states (reached summit on July 10, 2025), while at the peak, took a moment and looked southeast towards the Mojave desert with thought of the 1979 RIT Coast-to-Coast Relay Run and their record setting team, and their inspirational coach and runner, Peter J. Todd (passed away last November); it may have been his age or the altitude but he would be lying if he said he didn’t shed a tear.

Submitted on: July 13, 2025

Logo

Name: Richard Cavallaro

Class Year(s): 2001, 2004

Note: Command Computing, founded by Richard Cavallaro BS ’01, MS ’04, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary. They specialize in Microsoft 365 migrations, DNS configurations, and data backup solutions for small and medium-sized businesses. Based in Rochester, NY, they proudly serve clients across the United States. Command Computing is also a proud sponsor of the Phi Delta Theta Kevin Smith Scholarship Foundation.

Submitted on: July 13, 2025

Announcement in the ezine

Name: Frances Drew

Class Year(s): 1993, 1994

Note: Fran Drew MFA ’94 and the Lucky Strikes Debut CD were nominated in the New Artist Debut Album category by Blues Blast Magazine. Voting begins July 14, 2025.

Submitted on: July 12, 2025

Music Video with First AC and Lens expert, Dan (Ha Joon) Park

Name: Dallas Calkins

Class Year(s): 2022

Note: Dallas Calkins BFA ’22 began her career at Mountain House Media, founded by RIT Alum, Jeremiah Gryczka BS ’19, where she worked in camera for the NFL and A&E networks. Dallas moved to LA two years ago and began working as a freelance electric in the film industry. Since moving, she has worked with SnapChat Inc., F1, Faze Clan, The Pentatonix, Chris Brown, and many other high profile brands and influencers. After the effects of industry strikes and Covid restrictions had finally subsided, she began taking jobs in her aspired position as a director of photography. At the moment, Dallas continues to freelance with Mountain House Media and on her own in narrative, live TV and music video filmmaking as a cinematographer, with the intention to keep growing. Dallas works very often with other Tigers who live in LA, and their little community helps them grow together. She is thankful to have come this far, only 3 years out of school, and she looks forward to future growth with her fellow Tigers.

Submitted on: July 11, 2025

family with painting

Name: Brian Shapiro

Class Year(s): 62

Note: Brian Shapiro AAS ’62 was flown from his house in Pine Bush, NY, to Congregation B’nai Brith in Santa Barbara for the unveiling of his ten-foot-wide painting depicting fifty recognizable people celebrating Touching the Torah. See more work at his website, BrianShapiroArt.com.

Submitted on: July 11, 2025

Tisa shown here, running preliminary interviews for her film

Name: Tisa Zito

Class Year(s): 2009

Note: Tisa M. Zito BFA ’09, director, producer, and cinematographer, has been acting as DOCUTAH’s program director and film producer at Utah Tech University and is now working on her second feature doc film about the nuclear industry. Her first film Forevermoore; The Angelo Project, can be found on iTunes, Amazon, and others.

Submitted on: July 11, 2025

Novel: Secrets in the Bay - Time Will Tell

Name: Laurie (MAYNARD) White

Class Year(s): 89, 98

Note: Laurie (Maynard) White BS ’89, MS ’01, retired from 30+ years in higher ed communications. Laurie wrote and published a syfy novel, Secrets in the Bay - Time Will Tell.

Submitted on: July 11, 2025

Negotiating an obstacle during the marathon in Florida in March 2025

Name: Deborah Marcuccilli

Class Year(s): 1978

Note: Deb Marcuccilli BS ’78 was chosen by the United States Equestrian Federation USEF, to represent the US at the 2025 Para World Championships in Combined Driving, Sept. 5-7 in Germany. Para drivers are athletes with a disability. Combined Driving includes competition in Dressage, Marathons, and Cones. Deb graduated from RIT with a BSME degree from KGCOE.

Submitted on: July 11, 2025

Christina Werth ’13, left, and Hayley Bartkus ’17, right

Name: Christina Werth

Class Year(s): 2013,2017

Note: Echomentor, an online community for sonographers of all disciplines, founded by Christina Werth BS ’13 and Hayley Bartkus BS ’17, successfully hosted its first live, virtual event this spring, Mentor Week 2025. This premier, 4-night professional event included a speaker lineup featuring elected officials from multiple regional and national sonography professional societies, prominent sonography writers and researchers, industry leaders, and content experts from all over the country. The event, free and open to the entire sonography community, garnered international attention and received approximately 220 sonographer registrants.

Submitted on: July 10, 2025

Name: Alan Gordon

Class Year(s): 1991, 1993

Note: Asher Gordon BFA ’26, son of Christie (Bucalo) Gordon BFA ’02 and Alan Gordon BFA ’91, MFA ’93, is entering his senior year in film and animation. He had an animated film accepted into the 69th annual Finger Lakes Exhibition and was one of eight award winners of the Arthur and Ronan Christopher Louis award.

Submitted on: July 10, 2025